Anthony “Tony” Tandoi, a network engineer at Fordham who was known as a top-notch troubleshooter and a great team player, died of a heart attack on Dec. 6. He was 67.
He worked for over 30 years in network engineering, spending his early career at AT&T and MetLife before joining Fordham seven years ago.
Longtime colleague Cesar Nau, Fordham’s director of infrastructure services, remembers him as a calming presence in stressful moments. Network engineers at Fordham need to be able to fix all manner of outages, he said, including ones that pose safety threats, such as when the fire alarm system stops communicating with the fire department. Even in scenarios that required an immediate resolution, he remained cool-headed.
“Tony just knew how to bring everybody back down to earth,” said Nau. “While everybody is running around like headless chickens, he was always that even-keeled individual that took down his notes, got his thoughts together, and executed. He helped me tons in those types of scenarios in the sense that I would see him being so calm and he calmed me down all the time. And he just had this respectfulness about him and politeness that I personally admired. You don’t see that often anymore, unfortunately.”
Anand Padmanabhan, vice president and chief information officer at Fordham, said, “Tony was a dedicated and valued employee and great team member. His positive attitude inspired and elevated everyone around him. He will be sorely missed.”
He was also a valued player on the Fordham Bombers, the University’s interdepartmental softball team. Its former captain, Cloud Systems Analyst Ariel Cofresi, called him “a great team player, willing to play any position. Tony was very youthful at heart and didn’t let his age affect him on the field.”
Chief Troubleshooter at Home
His wife, Barbara, grew up in the same Morris Park area of the Bronx as her husband. After they were married in 1988, they moved to Westchester and raised their two girls, Dana and Aimee. Caring, thoughtful, kind, patient, and loving are the words the family used to describe Tony, who Barbara said was actively involved in all phases of their children’s lives. Their daughters played many sports, and he helped to coach their soccer, basketball, softball, and swim teams.
He also had a creative side and enjoyed working with his hands. Calligraphy was a favorite pastime of his, as was building models and computers. He passed along his love of art to his daughters, taught them how to draw, and encouraged his eldest, Dana, to pursue a career in design. He was also passionate about history, space, military aircraft, and science. He bonded with his youngest, Aimee, over her biology courses and passion for public health. A true New Yorker, he also loved the New York Yankees, and food. “He absolutely loved sharing a big dinner with family and enjoyed home-cooked meals,” said Barbara.
She also fondly recalled how he applied his problem-solving skills at home.
“He loved troubleshooting. It was one of his favorite words. If he had to fix a light bulb, he would say let me troubleshoot that!” she laughed.
In addition to his wife, daughters, and his daughters’ partners, Tony is survived by his sister, Anna. His family welcomes everyone whose lives he touched to join them in honoring his memory. A celebration of his life will be held on Sunday, Dec. 15 from 12 to 4 p.m. at the Edwards-Dowdle Funeral Home in Dobbs Ferry, New York. The funeral will take place on Monday, Dec. 16 at 1 p.m. at the Sharon Gardens Cemetery in Valhalla, New York. In lieu of flowers, the family asks for donations to be made to the American Diabetes Association or to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
